Openreach Northern Ireland, a large digital infrastructure provider, which currently employs more than 1,000 people in roles across the region, has named Garret Kavanagh as its new Director.
Garret, who’s most recent role was Senior Manager of Infrastructure Delivery, has more than 10 years’ experience in Openreach NI and replaces Mairead Meyer who recently stepped down after five years in the role.
Meanwhile the company has announced 17 more rural towns and villages where it will be building Ultrafast Full Fibre broadband over the next 18 months.
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The locations span the length and breadth of the region, from Belleek in Co. Fermanagh to Stewartstown in Co. Tyrone to Cushendun in Co. Antrim and Killinchy in Co. Down. As a result, these locations will be able to access download speeds of up to 1Gbps, that’s up to 10 times faster than the average home broadband connection. That means faster game downloads, better quality video calls and a higher resolution movie streaming.
This announcement comes alongside plans to add an additional £30 million to the £100 million investment Openreach recently announced for Northern Ireland between 2021 and 2022.
Speaking about the two announcements, Mr. Kavanagh said: “700,000 homes and businesses will be able to access Ultrafast Full Fibre technology by March 2022, that’s 75% of properties across Northern Ireland. We’re extremely proud to be building a strong and resilient network that will meet the needs of everyone, now and for decades to come. It’s a fantastic time to step into the role of Director of Openreach Northern Ireland.”
Garret also paid tribute to Mairead for her years of "dedicated service and commitment".
In his new role as Director, Garret’s focus will be on continuing to build Northern Ireland’s Ultrafast Full Fibre network and to make it a faster, more reliable and future-proof broadband network.
Source: Written from press release.
